After spending more than a decade as a child actor in some of the most loved films in Hollywood, with “Dolphin Tale”, “Marley and Me” and as the son of Brad Pitt in the 2006 “Babel” film, Nathan Gamble found himself in what he describes as a “wild nature”, both spiritually and professional.
“I worked a lot from 7 to 19 years old,” Gamble, now 27, told Christian Post. “But I was not anchored. I dragged my feet in the church, of course, but that was my mother's opportunity for the occasion. It was not mine.”
“As a child, I was so stressed by the lines, my hair fell … And then I fell with an unpleasant case of depression and loneliness while I lived in Hollywood by myself at 18. I didn't have a foundation. When things went wrong, it went to my head, and really the enemy's playground, that's for sure, it's when you are in solitude. ”
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But it was in this solitude that an unlikely series of presentations led him to the California Coast Bible College of Ventura.
“Six degrees of connection,” he recalls. “A guy who knew a girl who knew a guy who knew a dean of a biblical college asked if I had never planned to go. I said:” Never. Not once. “”
But something about the people he met the plot, said the actor. They brought peace, contentment that he could not explain. “Twist of the plot: it was the Spirit of God,” said Gamble. “I just went to make friends and I ended up being saved.”
Years pass. Gamble, who had worked regularly throughout his childhood, stopped obtaining roles. He prayed, completely abandoning his career: “If you never want me to act again, it's okay.”
A week later, the script of “Miracle on the PREPICE”, a modern film account of John Bunyan Progress of the Pilgrim With “Hercules” and the actor of “God Not Dead”, Kevin Sorbo, landed in his reception box.
Directed by Nathan Todd Sims and produced by FusionFlix EntertainmentThe film tells the story of the family slightly, a fractured group struggling with rebellion, selfishness and professional exhaustion. A trip to the mountains turns into a fight for survival, forcing each member to face their faith and its faults. Gamble plays Christian, the prodigal son whose journey reflects classical allegory.
“The film came from a story that I was talking about before: Pilgrim's progress,“Gamble said.” Growing up, I had the child's version, Dangerous tripAnd these illustrations have scared me. But this film lit it in a new way. “”
What made the “miracle on the precipice” particularly significant, is not only the role, but the environment, the actor, which was used to secular sets.
“I was probably crying every day on the set,” said Gamble. “Not because of my character, but because I was so overwhelmed with gratitude. Each time they said:” Silent on the set, his roll “, I just broke down. I never thought I would be in this position again.”
Having grown up in massive sets with little spiritual soil, Gamble said that the project was entirely different. “On” Dolphin Tale “, I was only a child, stressed to do my lines well. But in this set, I had peace. I knew that God had put me there.”
This feeling of divine appointment has permeated production, said the actor, describing moments when the actors and the team would stop after emotional scenes, not by performance but by presence.
“There were times when they shouted” cut “and we were getting there. We had to deal with what had just happened. It does not happen in most sets. This only happens when the spirit of God leads.”
However, Gamble stressed that spiritual resonance is not exclusive to denominational films, explaining that it is also seen in stories that support biblical values, that creators realize it or not.
“'Dolphin Tale' had a message of hope straight out of the scriptures,” he said. “People left while feeling lifted, even if they did not know why. We are all created with a spiritual adjustment fork. When we hear the truth, something resonates.”
He hopes that “the miracle on the precipice” will offer this same resonance for believers and skeptics.
“This film is for my friends from the Biblical University and my friends from industry,” he said. “It talks about the voyage of the prodigal, yes, but also to the faithful who feel forgotten, like the older brother in the parable of the prodigal son.”
For young viewers, in particular those who are wary of denominational films, Gamble said that the next project offers an authentic representation of Christian walking, as is Bunyan's original work.
“It is not a preacher. It is honest. It shows what a walk with God, the struggle, the reverse, the grace.”
The film, he says, invites the public to reset.
“Sometimes we are stuck in a cycle, even with faith. We forget why we thought for the first time. This film is a reminder: you are seen, you are called and your story is not over.”
Making the film also deepened Gamble's faith. He compares his trip to Joseph in Genesis, who waited for years for a dream to come true.
“Joseph never hesitated,” said Gamble. “He kept the vision. For me, this film was this kind of moment, a dream made after a long season of silence.”
Years of waiting were not wasted, he thought, but prepared her to cherish what came afterwards.
“If I had jumped just after being saved, I might not have appreciated it. But after seven years of nothing, this set looked like a gift. I saw it for what it was.”
Today, Gamble said that he considered the narration as a sacred vocation, and that he learns to adopt the slow pace.
“I want to tell stories that arouse something eternal,” he said. “Whether on a denominational set or in a general public project, I want to bring the presence of God with me.”
“The most dangerous prayer you can pray is: 'God, teach me patience',” said Gamble. “Because he will do it. He will give you the opportunity to wait. But pending, he prepares you.”
“If” miracle on the precipice “is the last film I make, I agree with that,” he added. “Because I now know that I am seen by him. And that's more than enough.”
“Miracle on the Pripice” will be released later this year.
Leah M. Klett is a journalist of the Christian Post. It can be attached to: leah.klett@christianpost.com
